Nail straightener



Aug. 26, 1947. E. s.v EusH NAIL STRAIGHTENER Filed Sept. 4, 1944 Ill JNVENTQR.

EUGENE s. BUSH ATTQRNEYS Patented Aug. 26, 1947 UNITED STATE S I PATENT OF FlCE NAILSTRAIG H-IENER Eugene. S. BushyPortland, Oreg.-.

Application September 4, 1944; Serial No. 552,698

One of the objects of this invention is to pro videa nail straightener which can be used so quickly and easily as to encourage thestraightem ing and reusev of bent nails in place of ,thecustomary practice of merely discarding th'em.

Another object of this invention is toprovide a nail straightener which is so simple and'inexpensive to manufacture that it will meet a ready.- demand for such an article.

A further object of the-invention is to have a device of thistype which can beattached to any vertical support or wall and in which enough leverage will be provided to enable nailsto be straightened without much efiort.

An additional object of this invention is to provide a practical nail straightener suitable for all medium sized nails in which there-will be no likelihood of bending any nails, particularly thin Wire nails, too far in the reverse direction in the effort to straighten them.

These and incidental objects I attain by making a nail straightener consisting of only three parts, including a main bracket, a plunger, and an elongated lever arm; and by forming, arranging and mounting the various members as herein briefly described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a view in isometric perspective of my nail straightener taken from the front, with the outer end of thelever arm broken away;

Fig. 2 is a sectional side elevation onthe line 2-2 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the entire device showing a nail in the-process of being straightened, but witl a .portionofthe endoi the plunger broken away for the sake of clarity; and

Fig. 4 is a front view with the 'leverarin in section and taken on the line 4-4.of Eig.;2;.

A bracketindicatedin generalby the reference character it, comprises a fiat plate-like portion ll, adapted to be secured flush with a wall or other flat support, and a partiallycut-awaycylindrical portion or plunger guide. l2 extending from the wall plate; I l and having its axis preferably perpendicular to the plane of the flat rear surface of the plate H. The cylindrical portion or plunger guide l2 is hollow and -slideably supports a solid cylindrical plunger 13. The transverse face of the outer end of the plunger 13 is formed with'a diametrically extending V-shaped groove M which is horizontally arranged and adapted to engage the bent section of the nail I 3 surfaces lilocatedapproximately in the-same planeas the lower edge of 'theigroovel l, extending part way along the portion l2, and a second pair of'flat surfaces I'Pat the outer endof the portion l2 extending in a plane located slightly above the top edge of the plunger groove 14. :Th'eshoulders between the pair of flat surfaces It and the end pair of raised flat surfaces I'L'respectively, have V-shaped notches l8 cut therein, corresponding approximately incross-section t0 the V-shaped groove I4. The purpose of these V- shaped notches l8, as apparent from the drawings, is to engage the nail [5 at spaced distances on either side of the bend engaged in the groove l4. Thus at thestart of the straightening operation, the bent nail [5 will be firmly held at three points.- As the bend becomes straightened an increasing portionof the nail is engaged by the plunger groove I4.

The fact that the groove [4 and the notches I8 are V-shaped enables nails of a wide range of sizes to be properly held therein during the straightening operation.

The plunger [3 is formed with a slot 20 located near the inner end which is adapted to accommodate and be engaged by the upwardly extending short arm 2| of the bell crank or lever 22. A corresponding but elongated slot 20 is cut in the bottom of the cylindrical portion I 2 to accommodate, the movement of the short arm 2| of the lever during themovement ofthe plunger l3.

The bell crank or lever 22 is pivotally mounted on a pin 24 which extends through apair of parallel webs, 23 formed integral withthe bracket l0, enabling the,1ever to pivot in a vertical plane between the webs 23. The pin 24 is preferably so arranged as to be easily withdrawn and thus to enable the lever 22 to be removed when the straightener is not being used and thus enable the straightener to take up less room when not used. The main lever arm of the bell crank lever 22 is formedwith a suitable handle'at its outer extremity and this armis madesufiiciently long to aiforda substantial leverage; thus makingrit possible toexert enough forceto straighten even hea-Vy' nails without necessitating the bearing down with any great effort on the handle. With the device, when made as illustrated in the drawings, it is possible even for a child to straighten ordinary nails without any trouble.

Ordinarily, since the ends of the groove M of the plunger are immediately adjacent to the inner ends of the notches l8 at each side when the nail has become straightened, there will be but little possibility of bending the nail too far in the opposite direction. However, if the nail which is being straightened is a very thin wire nail, there might be a possibility of bending it too far in the reverse direction, if excessive force is applied on the handle 22'. To avoid such possibility, I provide a special stop lug l9 located near the outer end of the cylindrical portion [2, as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, to limit the extent to which the plunger H! can be moved outwardly. This lug I9 is so positioned that when the plunger contacts the lug, the vertex of the V-shaped groove M of the plunger and the vertices of the V-shaped notches 18 will be in position to hold a perfectly straight thin wire nail. In other words, the lug 19 will insure the proper straightening of a thinwire nail and prevent its being bent too far in the straightening operation which, in the case of such thin wire nail, otherwise might inadvertently occur.

The wall plate I I of the bracket I is provided with suitable holes so that it may be attached in place by screws to the wall or to the vertical support.

It will be possible to make modifications in the shape and construction of the bracket it], but I have found the form in which this part of my nail straightening device is shown in the drawings to be very practical since it can be made in a single casting easily and inexpensively; and consequently, I consider the form as shown and described to be preferable. Other variations could. also be made in my nail straightener within the scope of my invention. It is not my intention to limit my invention to the exact form illustrated or otherwise than as stated in the claims.

I claim:

1. In a nail straightener a bracket adapted to be secured to an upright supporting surface, a hollow cylindrical portion extending from said bracket, a cylindrical plunger slidably mounted in said hollow portion. a V-shaped horizontal transverse groove extending entirely across the outer end of said plunger, said hollow cylindrical portion cut away near its outer end so as to have a pair of horizontal surfaces at diametrically o posite sides of said plunger located in the same plane as the lower edge of said plunger groove, a shoulder extending upwardly from the outer end of each of said horizontal surfaces. a V- shaoed notch in each shoulder, said notches being in transverse alinement with each other, a bellcrank lever for actuating said plunger. said bellcrank lever pivotally mounted on said bracket. and means for limiting the extent to which said plunger can be moved outwardly whereby to prevent a nail in said straightener from being bent too far in reverse direction.

2. A nail straightener of the character described comprising a bracket adapted to be secured to an upright supporting surface, a hollow cylindrical portion extending from said bracket, a cylindrical plunger slideably mounted in said hollow portion, a V-shaped horizontal transverse groove extending entirely across the outer end of said plunger, said hollow cylindrical portion cut away near its outer end so as to have a pair 4 of horizontal surfaces at diametrically opposite sides of said plunger located in the same plane a the lower edge of said plunger groove, a shoulder extending upwardly from the outer end of each of said horizontal surfaces, a V-shaped notch in each shoulder, said notches being in transverse alinement with each other, a bellcrank lever for actuating said plunger, said bellcrank lever pivotally and removably mounted on said bracket, and a stop located at the outer end of said hollow cylindrical portion limiting the extent to which said plunger can be moved outwardly whereby to prevent a nail in said straightener from being bent too far in reverse direction.

3. A nail straightener comprising a bracket having a substantially flat rear face, a plunger guide extending horizontally from said bracket and perpendicular to the plane of said rear face of said bracket, a plunger slidably mounted in said plunger guide, a horizontal transverse groove extending entirely across the outer end of said plunger, said plunger guide formed with a pair of horizontal surfaces on opposite sides of said plunger located in the same horizontal plane as the lower edge of said plunger groove, a shoulder extending upwardly from the outer end of each of said horizontal surfaces, a horizontal, transversely-extending notch in each shoulder, said notches being in transverse alinement with each other and being approximately the same size in cross-section as said groove in said plunger, the lower edges of said notches located in the same horizontal plane as said horizontal surfaces, and means for forcibly moving said plunger towards the outer end of said plunger guide.

4. A nail straightener of the character described comprising a supportin member, a plunger guide extending horizontally from said supporting member, a plunger slidably mounted in said plunger guide, a V-shaped horizontal transverse groove extending entirely across the outer end of said plunger, said plunger guide cut away near its outer end so as to have a pair of horizontal surfaces on opposite side of said plunger located in the same horizontal plane as the lower edge of said plunger groove, a shoulder extending upwardly from the outer end of each of said horizontal surfaces, a V-shaped notch in each shoulder, said notches being in transverse alinement with each other and being approximately the same size in cross-section as said groove in said plunger, the lower edges of said notches located in the same horizontal plane as said horizontal surfaces, and lever means for forcibly moving said plunger towards the outer end of said plunger guide.

EUGENE S. BUSH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,387,491 Hupman Aug. 16, 1921 1,409,876 McLachlan Mar. 14, 1922 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 83,552 Switzerland May 1, 1919 

